Bookcase device



A ril 21, 1964 D. H. ZARLEY BOOKCASE DEVICE Filed Sept. 15, 1961 e 7 1 n r tr w 5 d d 5 w m i (Z m $0 8 a u m.

United States Patent Ofi ice 3,129,677 Patented Apr. 21, 1964 3,129,677 BOGKCASE DEVI'CE Donald H. Zarley, 4024 Adams, Des Moines, Iowa Filed Sept. 15, 1161, Ser. No. 138,401 12 Claims. (Cl. 108-50) My invention relates to book storing equipment and more particularly to a bookcase that will prevent the accumulation of dust on the tops of books stored therein.

The accumulation of dust on the tops of books in book cases is a problem which has at the present time gone unsolved. Some bookcases are enclosed in an effort to slow down the accumulation of this dust, but the enclosed bookcase is not a complete answer to the problem and such devices make the handling of the books very difficult and cumbersome.

Therefore, the principal object of my invention is to provide a bookcase device that will absolutely prevent the accumulation of dust on the tops of books stored therein.

A further object of my invention is to provide a bookcase device wherein books can be easily placed in and removed from the structure.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a bookcase device that will prevent the accumulation of dust on the tops of books therein whether the bookcase is a piece of custom made furniture or whether the bookcase is a permanent part of a building.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a bookcase device that will not hide the books therein from view.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a bookcase device that is economical of manufacture, durable in use, and refined in appearance.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangements, and combination, of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, specifically pointed out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of my device;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged frontal elevation of my device with portions thereof cut away to more fully illustrate the construction thereof;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of my device taken on line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of my device similar to that of FIG. 3 but which shows the position of the components of my device when a book is being removed therefrom;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a different form of my device; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional view through a bookcase structure incorporating the device shown in FIG. 5.

I have used the numeral 10 to generally designate a bookcase structure comprised of ends 12 and 14, top 16, and bottom 18. An elongated slat extends across the front upper portion of bookcase 1t) and is secured to the top 16 by means of hinges 22. As shown in FIG. 4, hinges 22 permit slat 20 to rotate from its normal vertical position upwardly and away from the bookcase 10 with the upper longitudinal edge of the slat serving as the pivotal axis.

A sheet 24 of any flexible material can have its rearward edge secured to the rearward underneath portion of top 16 as clearly shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. Tacks 26 can extend through the rearward edge of sheet 24 at a plurality of positions to effect the connection between the sheet and the top 16 of the bookcase 10. Obviously, the rearward edge of the sheet 24 could be secured to the upper inside end of back portion 28 of the bookcase without appreciably altering the position of the flexible sheet 24. The vertical height of slat 20 should be such that its lower edge extends down below the top 16 of the bookcase 10. The forward edge of sheet 24 can be secured to the lower inside surface of slat 20 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and this connection can be accomplished by tacks 26 in the same manner that the rearward edge of the sheet was connected to the top of the bookcase. The length of sheet 24 can be the same as the distance between the ends 12 and 14 of the bookcase, but the width of the sheet should be greater than the width of top 16 as measured from front to rear. Thus, when no books are in the bookcase 10, the sheet 24 will assume the arcuate position shown by the dotted lines in FIG. 3. For appearance purposes, it is desirable that the lowest point in the sheet 24 when in the position shown by the dotted lines in FIG. 3 be no lower than the lower edge of the slat 20 so that the sheet will be completely hidden from view. A resilient element such as rubber band 36 can be secured by its ends to the bookcase ends 12 and 14 in a horizontal position slightly below the bookcase top 16. The position of rubber band 30 is such that it does not engage the sheet 24 when the slat 20 is in its vertical or closed condition.

In FIG. 5 I have shown a shelf 32 which is similar in function to the top 16 of bookcase 10. A slat 34 which is similar to slat 20 is secured to shelf 32 by hinges 36 in the same manner that slat 20 was secured to bookcase top 16. A sheet 38 of flexible material similar to that of sheet 24 is secured to shelf 32 and slat 34 in the same manner that sheet 24 was secured to bookcase top 16 and slat 20. Brackets 39 are secured to the bottom ends of shelf 32 in any convenient manner and extend vertically downwardly from the shelf as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. A rubber band 40 similar to the rubber band 30 extends between the lower ends of the brackets 39. Both of the rubber bands 30 and 40 are normally under some tension.

In FIG. 6, I have shown a bookcase structure 42 which has at least an end portion 44 and a back portion 46. Conventional shelf brackets 48 can be adjustably secured in normal fashion to the end portion 44 and the back portion 46 of the bookcase structure 42 as shown in FIG. 6. As also shown in FIG. 6, the shelf 32 can be supported on the shelf brackets 48 within bookcase structure 42 so that its position within the bookcase structure can be selectively adjusted.

The normal operation of my device is as follows: When it is desired to place a book in the bookcase structure 10, the slat 29 is pivoted upwardly as shown in FIG. 4 and the book St) is placed Within the bookcase structure on bottom 18 in conventional fashion. The height of the book 51) should preferably extend from bottom 18 to a point slightly above the lower edge of slat 20. After the book 50 has been placed inside the bookcase structure 10, the slat 20 is permitted to pivot downwardly to its vertical position as shown in FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 3, the flexible sheet 24 falls down and rests on top of the book 5t) when the slat 20 is in its closed position. The presence of sheet 24 on top of the book 50 absolutely prevents any dust from accumulating on top of the book. It should be noted that as the slat 20 is moved to its open position as shown in FIG. 4, the flexible sheet 24 is drawn to a taut condition and engages the rubber band 30. The rubber band 30 exerts some downward force on the flexible sheet while the slat is in the process of being opened and closed. This tension exerted on the flexible sheet by the rubber band keeps the flexible sheet from creating a fold between the slat 2t) and the top edge of the book when the slat assumes its closed position. Such a fold is objectionable because it interferes with the effective covering on the top of the book and if the fold extends below the lower edge of the slat, it is unsightly. The rubber band 30 tends to cause the sheet to uniformly settle on the top of the books without any such folds being created. The book 50 can be removed from the bookcase structure 145 by merely reversing the above steps, and it is seen in FIG. 4 that the book 50 can be easily removed upon the opening of slat 20 in the manner indicated.

The form of my invention in FIGS. 5 and 6 operates in the same manner as the corresponding structure referred to above. However, the device shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 creates an integral package of shelf 32, slat 34, sheet 38 and rubber band 40 wherein this composite structure may be adjustably mounted in a bookcase struc ture 42 by means of the adjustable book shelf brackets 48. The device shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 is particularly adaptable when bookcases are being built into a permanent structure because the shelves can then be adjustably mounted to accommodate books of different sizes. Since the height of the sheet 38 with relation to the book is very important, this feature of adjusting the height of the shelf is very important.

It is therefore seen that my device will absolutely prevent the accumulation of dust on the tops of the books because the tops of the books are completely covered. It is also seen that the books are kept in a bookcase structure that is substantially open and the books are not hidden from view.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that my device will accomplish at least all of its stated objectives.

Some changes will be made in the construction and arrangement of my bookcase device without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claims, any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

1. In a bookcase device, a bookcase structure comprised of two vertical ends,

a horizontal top secured to the tops of said two ends,

and a horizontal bottom secured to the bottoms of said two ends;

an elongated slat extending along the top front edge of the top of said bookcase and extending partially downwardly over the open front thereof,

means pivotally securing said slat to said top whereby said slat can be pivotally moved away from the front edge of the top of said bookcase,

and a flexible sheet having its forward edge secured to the lower inside surface of said slat and its rearward edge secured to the upper rearward portion of said bookcase structure, whereby a book resting in an upright position on the bottom of said bookcase structure and having its top extending above the level of the lower edge of said slat will have its top portion engaging said flexible sheet and covered by said flexible sheet.

2. The structure of claim 1 wherein the flexible sheet has a width greater than the width of the top of said bookcase structure.

3. The structure of claim 1 wherein an elongated means extends between the ends of said bookcase above said flexible sheet to engage said sheet when said slat is pivoted away from said bookcase structure.

4. The structure of claim 1 wherein the bottom of said 4 bookcase is a horizontal shelf and is vertically adjustably mounted within said bookcase.

5. The structure of claim 1 wherein the elongated means extends between the ends of said bookcase above said flexible sheet to engage said sheet with said slat, pivoted away from said bookcase structure, said elongated means being of resilient construction.

6. In a bookcase device,

a horizontal shelf,

an elongated slat hingedly secured to one edge of said shelf and extending downwardly therefrom,

and a flexible sheet underneath said shelf,

said flexible sheet having its forward edge secured to the lower portion of said slat and its rearward edge secured to the rearward edge of said shelf. 7. The structure of claim 6 wherein the flexible sheet has a width greater than the width of said shelf.

8. The structure of claim 6 wherein an elongated means is secured to the ends of said shelf to dwell between the bottom of said shelf and the top of said sheet to engage said'sheet when said sheet 'is pivoted outwardly from said shelf.

9. The structure of claim 6 wherein said elongated means is secured to the ends of said shelf to dwell between the bottom of said shelf and the top of said sheet to engage said sheet when said sheet is pivoted outwardly from said shelf, said elongated means being of resilient construction.

10. The structure of claim 1 wherein the top of said bookcase is a horizontal shelf and is vertically adjustably mounted within said bookcase.

11. The structure of claim 1 wherein the top and bottom of said bookcase are horizontal shelves and are vertically adjustably mounted within said bookcase.

12. In a bookcase device, a bookcase structure comprised of two vertical ends having forward edges,

a horizontal book supporting shelf supported by said ends,

an elongated horizontal slat extending across the forward edges of said ends at a point above and in spaced relation to said shelf,

means for pivotally supporting said slat with respect to said ends so that said slat can be pivotally moved outwardly from the forward edges of said ends,

a flexible sheet having its forward edge secured to the inside surface of said slat,

and means for supporting a rearward edge of said flexible sheet at a point vertically disposed above the rearward edge of said shelf,

said flexible sheet having a width such that it normally hangs loosely downwardly from its means of sup port when said slat engages the front edges of said ends, but assumes a more taut condition when said slat is pivoted outwardly away from the forward edges of said ends.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 332,238 Denton Dec. 15, 1885 721,532 Baron Feb. 24, 1903 1,569,406 Sonntag Jan. 12, 1926 1,602,410 Hamblin Oct. 12, 1926 

1. IN A BOOKCASE DEVICE, A BOOKCASE STRUCTURE COMPRISED OF TWO VERTICAL ENDS, A HORIZONTAL TOP SECURED TO THE TOPS OF SAID TWO ENDS, AND A HORIZONTAL BOTTOM SECURED TO THE BOTTOMS OF SAID TWO ENDS; AN ELONGATED SLAT EXTENDING ALONG THE TOP FRONT EDGE OF THE TOP OF SAID BOOKCASE AND EXTENDING PARTIALLY DOWNWARDLY OVER THE OPEN FRONT THEREOF, MEANS PIVOTALLY SECURING SAID SLAT TO SAID TOP WHEREBY SAID SLAT CAN BE PIVOTALLY MOVED AWAY FROM THE FRONT EDGE OF THE TOP OF SAID BOOKCASE, AND A FLEXIBLE SHEET HAVING ITS FORWARD EDGE SECURED TO THE LOWER INSIDE SURFACE OF SAID SLAT AND ITS REARWARD EDGE SECURED TO THE UPPER REARWARD PORTION OF SAID BOOKCASE STRUCTURE, WHEREBY A BOOK RESTING IN 